Means for signaling to or communicating with ships.



Patented Oct. I4, I902.

L. DAFT &. A. WILLIAMS. MEANS FOR SIGNALING TO OR COMMUNICATING WITH SHIPS.

(Application filed June 29, 1901.)

fiwerzfo (No Model.)

10 tion, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use 25 ceiving or detecting apparatus, by means ofwhlch the signals are received and made per UNITED STATES PATENT IOFFICEQI L'EODAFT A'NDJAVLFRED WAILLIAMS, or vwmmnnnon, ENeLANii MEANS-FOR SIGNALING T0 on-commu mcm'me wlrnsmrs.

V 1; 1-' H SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No, -7 L1,386, dated October 14, 1902,

i npplloatienfiled more, 1901, smnm. 66,561. (romaine To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known' that we,LEO DAFT and ALFRED WILLIAMS, .of 50 Hartfield road, Wimbledon,

in the county'of Surrey, England, (Whose posi r 5 office addresses are'the same,) have invented certain new and useful Improved Means for Signaling to 9r Communicating with Ships;

and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear,and exact description of theinventhe same. I

Our invention has reference-to improved electrical means for conveying signals to ships at sea, and is specially designed to warn such vessels when approaching shore both of the proximity of a rock or headland or the like danger and also of the directionin which it lies. s

Our invention consists,essentially,of means for transmitting the signals from the island or headland and of apparatus situated on board the vessel which is to be warned of its proximity thereto consisting of certain receptible. In order to transmit the signal from the shore to the vessel, we employ a ring or' part 30 of a ringof metal, (such as a stranded cable,)'

with one-terminal of a source of high-tension which is inunersedin the water at a convenient distance from thesh'ore and preferably connected by means of insulated conductors (which resemble in construction the shore endsof submarine cables) at various points electricity, such as an induction-coil. The other terminal of the induction-coil iscon nected to earth ata point situated, preferably,

0 somewhere near the center of the island or headland, the earth connection being made to a suitable buried plate, a mass of buried carbon, or by the like equivalent and known means. A Morse key or equivalent appli- 5 ance, which may be worked either by hand or automatically at certain fixed intervals by machinery, is introduced in the circuit of the induction-coil for giving the signals. Any existing form olfinduction-coil may be em- 5 p yed in oursystem in the mannerdescribed and will give more or less satisfactory results; but the best effects are obtained with a special form of induction-coil, which we shall describe in detai below.

The means which we employ on board the vessel for receiving and. indicating the signals transmitted from the land consist of two or more'plates arranged, preferably, as far as possible from one another on the, vessel below the water-line-say at the bow and stern, These plates are connected, preferably by insulated conductors, with the terminals of a delicate relay. This relay is arranged insuch a manner as to close a second or local electric circuit, which operates bells or visual signals, or both, when the relay is itself set in action. This occurs, assuming the relay to be connected to plates situated on the vessel, as above described,whenever the vessel is approaching the island o'r'headlandprovided with the appl iances above described and when the induction-coil situated thereon and with the connections mentioned is operated by the key.

If the vessel is not approaching the island or headlaud,but is passing atright angles to it, or

thereabout, so that the plates on the bow and stern are approximately equidistant from the submerged ring connected with the induction -coil' on the shore, will not operate even when the coil on shore hasbeen employed to transmit the signal.

In order to enable persons situated on the then the relay vessel to be made aware of the heighborhood of theisland or headland-say, for instance, 1

they are not approach in a fog-even when ing it, we may arrange two other plates pref-, erably similarly connected to another relay arranged to work different signals from those be indicated and then;

only gwhen the bow and stern of the vessel are approximately equidistant'ifrom the submerged ring.

loo

9S Any form, of suflicien tly delicate relay may be employed, connected, asabove described, on board the vessel; but we p'referto employ a special form-of relaywhich refer to the accompanying sheet of" drawings, which we make part of thisspecification, and

in which-ev Y Y i and to the ring or partof the ring submerged around it. I Fig. 2 is a planof the improved form ofrelay' which we prefer to employ; g I 7 p improves the efiecti'veness of the induction- I I gr eat-as'that offanordinaryinduction-coil i ,i'or'givinga three-inchspark. v

Fig. 3shows in sectional detail part of a spet cial form of; cout actabreaker which we have found when employed with our: induction-coil .7 gives increasedly satisfactory results. Fig. iisEa;planofFig.3..,. y In the figures,a is theind uction-coil,.whicl 1 when constructed in vthevmanner which, as

: above menitioned, wehave found; to give the mostsatisfact ory' resultsconsists of 1 a single 1 winding' of thin sheet-copper of the same vvividthras the length of the coil, the different layersof the sheet-copper being separated Y Y fromoneanother by a continuous 1 sheet :of I thin insulating materiai, such as paraflined paper. Dimensions which we have found'to give, good results are for thev stripof copper 1 six inches in; width and one hundred-feet in v v length. The coil as thus constructed has only. a single or primary winding. Itis pro- I vided 'with a core of iron wires a" abouttwo inches in diameter. Theends-of the winding. of the coil are connected to the: battery b through the contact-breaker,consisting of the vibrating arm d, controlled by the spring f 1 and thecontact-screw a in theordinary man The coutact breaker isshuntedi by a v I condensers, the capacity of which should bev I large namelya somc: two .or' three; times as r is the ring, which is composed of stranded conductor, which is submerged at a moderate distance-say one hundred yardsfrom the shore either completely or partly around the island or headland. One end of the winding of the coil a (where an ordinary coil is used the terminal of the secondary coil) is connected by the lead 1 to the earth-plate or other contacts p, situated near the middle of'the island or headland. The other end of the induction-coil winding is connected to the ring by insulated conductors constructed like the shore ends of cables, of which several, preferably equidistantly, are employed, but of which only one is shown in Fig. l-namely, Z. A Morse or other similar key It is inserted in the connection Z by which the coil a is connected to the battery b. This key, which may be operated automatically-say'by clockwork mechanism or by handenables the signals which result from the operation of the coil connected in the manner described to be given.

Toward the end of the vibrating arm of the contact-breaker, which prefenably takes the form of a rod, is mounted a special applianc'e, the use of which we have found to improve the results obtained. It is shown in nected by the bar 7- niece detail in Figs. 3 andi4 and consists of acylim. d rical receptacle h, mounted between the stop-rings gag, comprising an annular space inolo'sed by two stoppers 11 'i, the space being partially'filled by metallic mercury When 7 the ttontactbreakeris vibrating,the mercury Z oscillating in the containing vessel h causes the vibrating arm (1 of the cont'act-breaker'to give: a sortof double blow, which very much coil.-' 1

i shore, which is provided with the above-dc scribed signaling apparatus, ac showing the vessel-outsidethe ring, but heading straight L; for it, and y: showingitinside the'ring and lcloselyapproachiugtheland. I v v 1 i I The type of relay which we 'p'refer to em--' i ploy on board the'vessel for detecting the signals transmitted from the shore is shown diagrammatically in Fig. 22' It consists, :es ;senti ally,lof the rectangular permanent: steel 1 magnet 5,i the ends of which are cross-con- 7 iron 8, secured to the cross-bar 7, which has :the' eiiiectiof making a comparatively small magnetic gap between the'cylinder 8 and the pole-pieces 9 v9. -P'ivotally mounted about the cylindrical mass .8 is coil of insulated wire .10, which corresponds to the'moving coil ina dArsonval galvanometer. This c0ilcarriesi the branched coutact ar1n 11, which is: adapted to. make electric contacts with the v contact-screws; 12 and ;13,-which-,'as well as the contactarm; are. provided with suitable i The platinum contacts for that purpose. ends of the moving coil 10 are connected to the main terminals of the relay 1 and 2 di-' rectly and through the plug block or bush 21, respectively. The control of the relay is eifected by means of the small horseshoe permanent magnet 16, which is mounted on a slide 16, which can be moved backward or forward by the adjusting-screw 15, the slide 16 moving, in guides 17. The cohtact-arm 11, beingof soft iron, is held in the normal position shown in the drawings by the attraction of the permanent magnet 16, the value of the couple tending to restore it to this position when displaced, varying according to the distance of the permanent magnet 16 and diminishing as that distance increases. It will be observed that the magnet 16 is provided with a winding 14, mounted on it. This is so arranged that when a current traverses this winding it tends to weaken the permanei t magnetism, and this winding may be arranged either in parallel or series with the moving coil 10. In Fig. 2 it is shown in series connected through the plug-bush 21, the object of this arrangement being to enable the coil 14 to be short-circuited,and so thrown out of action altogether, by inserting a metal plug into the bush 21.

This bar-magnet is'prof vided with curved polepieces 9 between. 1 'which'is mounted a cylindrical mass of soft When the coils on the permanent magnet 14 are arranged in series with the moving coil 7 10, their resistance should be made considertraverses the movingycoil also passesthrough the coil 14, thereby weakening the --'magnetism of the magnet 16, the control is weakened at the'instant that the deflecting force comes into action, and thereby the sensitiveness is greatly increased. -We havefonnd that excellent results are obtained with this relay by using a movable coil with, the re- Tdred ohms.

sistance of five hundred ohms and winding the permanent controlling-magnets with .windings having a resistance of about one hun- In addition to the arrangement above described the controlling-magnet may be wound with coils divided into a number of sections, which maybe connected to amultiplecommutator, so as to enable all or any of the sections to be employed, thereby wa lying the sensitiveness of the control still further; When used upon the vessel for recording signals, the main terminals of the relay 1 and 2 are connected to two plates-3 and 4, situated below the water-line at the-bow and stern of the vessel. Two subsidiary terminals on the relay 23.-and 25 are connected to the contact-arm 11 by a flexible filament of phosphor-bronze 11 or by othersuitable means. The two terminals 22 and 2,4 are connected to the contact-screws 12 and 13,respectively. Signaling appliances, such 'as bells, are. connected in the circuits of the tor minals 23 and 22 and 24 and 25 to suitable batteries or other sources of current, so that when the contact-arm 11 makes contact with.

the contact-screw 13 a set of signals connected withthe terminals 24 and 25 will be set in action, while when the contact-arm makes contact with the contact-screw 12 those signals connected with the terminals 22 and 23 will be set in operation.

Two relays, such as that shown and described in reference to Fig. 2, are mounted.

on the vessel, onebei n'g connected to plates 3 and 4 at the bow and stern, respectively, and the other being connected to plates 3' and 4'. on either side o the hull. It now a vessel is approaching the land some distance outside the submerged ring and is in the position shown in dotted lines at m, if the coil on the shore, connected as described and shown, is being operated by the key It a certain potential difference is found to be established between the bow and .jhe stern plates 3 and 4, and the coil 10 willbe accordingly deflected-say so as to bring the com tact-arm 11 into contact with the screw. 13-'-.'-.-

which will cause the signals connected with the terminals 24 and 25 to be set in operation. If the vesselis turned agound and proceeds in diametrically the opposite direction, the con-' tact-arm 11 will be deflected to make contact.- withthe screw 12, causing the signals connectedwith-22 and 23 to beset in action. In

the position shown atlmthere will be no potential difierence between-the plates 3' and 4', and the second relay connected tothose plates willnot operate. If,'however, the vessel is in a position at ,right angles to that shown at m, then this relay will operate; but

the first relay connected to the plates 13 and 4: will cease to act. By this means the vessel is warned not only of the neighborhood of the headland, but also of the direction in which it lies. If the position of the vessel is--that shown in dotted lines at y'namely inclined. to the radial line joining p and the ring r-.- no matter whether the vessel be inside or outside the ring, then both' relays will operate. simultaneously.

We claim For marine electric signaling, a combination offour combinations, the first combina- Q 'tion consisting of an earthed plate, a distant wide-spread conductor'sunk in the sea, a source of electricity and an induction-coil; the second combination consisting of a. vi-

bratin g contact-breaker and a receptacle partially filled with mercury, adj ustably fitted to the same, these two combinations together being adapted to generate and transmit electric impulses to considerable distances through the earth and water; the third combination consists of two plates carried by a ship exposed to the contact of the sea-water in positions as remote as possible from one another, the two plates being in electrical connection and having the fourth combifia tion interposed in series between them; the fourth combination being a device for detecting minute electric impulses and consisting of-a pivoted coil 10 suspended in a magnetic field and rigidly connected to a soft-iron arm' 11 controlled by an adjustable permanent magnet 16 which is so wound in series with the pivoted coillO that the passage 012 an electric impulse momentarily weakens its controlling influence, substantially as described.

In witness whereof we have hereunto set our hands in the presence of two witnesses.

. LEO DAFT'. i ALFRED WILLIAMS. Witnesses: WARWICK HY. WILLIAMS, WALTER J .SKERTEN.

III.- 

